Opening monologue in Woody Allen’s Manhattan

“Chapter one. ”

“He adored New York City. He idolised it all out of proportion. “

Uh, no. Make that “He romanticised it all out of proportion. “

“To him, no matter what the season was, this was still a town that existed in black and white and pulsated to the great tunes of George Gershwin. “

Uh… no. Let me start this over.

“Chapter one. ”

“He was too romantic about Manhattan, as he was about everything else. “

“He thrived on the hustle, bustle of the crowds and the traffic. “

“To him, New York meant beautiful women and street-smart guys who seemed to know all the angles. “

Ah, corny. Too corny

for a man of my taste.

Let me… try and make it more profound.

“Chapter one. He adored New York City. “

“To him, it was a metaphor for the decay of contemporary culture. “

“The same lack of integrity to cause so many people to take the easy way out…

… was rapidly turning the town of his dreams…”

No, it’s gonna be too preachy. I mean, face it, I wanna sell some books here.

“Chapter one. He adored New York City, although to him it was a metaphor

for the decay of contemporary culture. “

“How hard it was to exist in a society desensitised by drugs, loud music, television, crime, garbage…”

Too angry. I don’t wanna be angry.

“Chapter one. “

“He was as tough and romantic as the city he loved. “

“Behind his black-rimmed glasses was the coiled sexual power of a jungle cat. “

I love this.

“New York was his town and it always would be. “

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